Boris Johnson has been warned by business leaders that a fresh package of economic support would be required if rising Covid-19 infections prevent the further relaxation of pandemic restrictions next month. After the reopening of hospitality venues indoors across all four nations of the UK, the Guardian’s latest monthly assessment of economic developments suggests the country is on course for a short-term growth boom this summer. – Guardian
Climate-heating emissions from private jet flights have soared in Europe since 2005, according to a report. It calls for wealthy fliers to pay ticket taxes of 325m a year to fund the acceleration of zero-carbon aviation technology. Carbon emissions from private flights rose by 31% from 2005-19, the report says, and private aviation had rebounded to pre-pandemic levels by August 2020, when 60% of public flights were grounded. – Guardian
Britain has a trade deal with oil-rich Gulf states in its sights, international trade secretary Liz Truss has said, as ministers close in on a £5bn investment tie-up with Abu Dhabi. Officials are working on an approach to the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates after making the oil-pumping bloc a “definite target” for a trade deal, Ms Truss told the Daily Telegraph. – Telegraph
The race to become chairman of Ofcom will be re-run after Facebook and Google lobbied to stop the former Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre getting the job, The Telegraph can reveal. The culture secretary Oliver Dowden on Wednesday wrote to Peter Riddell the Public Appointments commissioner, saying he wants the process to start “afresh” with a new selection panel for the £142,500-a-year role – one of the most influential in the British media industry. – Telegraph
Elliott Management will not push for a sale of GlaxoSmithKline’s vaccines and pharmaceuticals business, signalling that the US activist hedge fund is not seeking to wage an aggressive and politically contentious campaign against the British drugs group. It is also understood that Elliott is not planning to push for cuts to Glaxo’s £5 billion research and development budget, and will be supportive of GSK remaining in the UK. – The Times
